Funny Business: the musical

Funny Business: the musical, is produced under the banner of Blak Yak Theatre and is showing at the studio in the Subiaco Arts Centre until July 16. Directed by Lorna Mackie and musically directed by Matt Austin, this show is a semi-improvised musical dubbed ‘the office with music’. Prominent UK Playwright Anthony Neilson recently wrote an article for the Guardian where he said, “boring an audience is the one true sin in theatre. We've been boring audiences for decades now, and they've responded by slowly withdrawing their patronage.” I think he is absolutely right. I refer to this because Funny Business did something that a lot of theatre productions fail to do: it didn’t bore me. It’s not high art or anything, in fact, the script doesn’t make a great deal of sense, but it was entertaining. Although I wasn’t completely sure to what extent the piece was improvised, I felt that it created a rawness to the performances that made this show a success, where ultimately it could have been an abject failure. The actors completely sold a show that lacked, at times, in substantial written material. But I also believe that was half the fun of the production. I applaud Lorna and Blak Yak for taking a theatrical risk. I also I believe a lot of the patrons appreciated seeing something new, because they were engaged from the get go. Funny Business boasts the best ensemble performance I have seen this year. Everyone had clearly defined characters, bought into the silliness of the show without hesitation and sung beautifully. To point anyone out would be a disservice to the rest of the cast. The choice to do Canadian accents in a neutral tone was an excellent decision. The design of the show was simplistic, hosting a very basic lighting rig and having a spartan set, with two televisions flanking the stage. It was very refreshing to see a production not have to rely on props and set. I also appreciated the motivated use of multi-media and how they created another character out of the screen. There were a few technical mishaps, the one door for entrances and exits was a bit annoying and the diction wasn’t great at some points, but overall, a great production that was not only enjoyable, but I daresay, quite accessible to a non-theatrical audience, especially if you’ve ever worked in an office. On a closing note, I would like to commend Blak Yak for pulling themselves out of their rut recently and becoming once again, a formable player in the community theatre scene. Well done. Tickets through BOCS on 9484 1133 or at http://www.bocsticketing.com.au/whats-on/480/funny-business-the-musical/. $26 full, $18.50 concession. 7, 8, 9, 13, 14, 15, 16 July. All shows start at 8pm.